On Android 12, You Can Play Games while Still Downloading Them

If you are into mobile gaming and prefer big spectacular games, here’s some good news for you. The new feature that Google announced to hold at the Game Developing Summit is meant to reduce the time from the moment you start installing a game and the moment you can actually play it. The feature is called “Play As You Download”, and it’s exactly what it says on the tin.

The idea is that you do not have to download all the game assets to start playing. Indeed, when it comes to an RPG, you can download some cutscenes from the middle of the game later and start playing as soon as the intro is on your device. The same is with puzzle games: for example, a game like Candy Crush Saga introduces new elements as you proceed, but you don’t need those from the second world to start playing the first.

This possibility is brought by the new application format named AAB (Android App Bundle). As Android 12 is released, Google plans to replace the old APK format with it. What for? Here is just one of the reasons. 
The idea is new for mobile gaming, but console owners are not new to this. For example, Sony has already implemented it for the latest PlayStation consoles. Given how large console games get, it’s a justified feature. But mobile ones also grow bigger. Google says that Play as You Download will cut the download time to half for mobile games starting at 400 MB.

It is the first similar attempt for Google. It has already introduced Google Play Instant, which enables players to start playing games from the Apple Store without downloading them. As you see, though, this is rather great for trying out games and deciding whether you want them at all. PAYD, on the contrary, is for games you have already purchased and are ready to have on your device.

For most gamers, though, this paradise is yet to come. First, their devices must be updated to Android 12. Second, game publishers need to repack their Android games to AAB. It all takes time, and it cannot be cut in two while downloading. Anyway, it is so unless Google invents something else for that.